River City Rebels

by Mike DaRoncoRiver City Rebels formed out of the unlikely town of Burlington, VT, in late 1997. With the original members of guitarist Dan "Bopper" O'Day and drummer Erik Schmidt and bassist Chris Jukosky, River City Rebels would endure a number of lineup changes before settling down with Ward Aimi (vocals), Brandon Rainier (trombone), Gabe Rich (guitar), and Dan McCool (trumpet). Resulting in a sound of street punk, ska undertones, and a politically inspired lyrical content, Victory Records eventually released River City's debut full-length, Racism, Religion, and War..., in 2000. Playin' to Live, Livin' to Play appeared the next summer, after which the band's lineup was cut down to six with O'Day picking up vocal duties. Their third full-length, No Good No Time No Pride, followed in October 2002, which then transitioned into the vintage N.Y.C. punk sounds (much more New York Dolls than the Clash this time around) of 2004's Hate to Be Loved. Having parted ways with Victory following the album's release, River City Rebels hooked up with Rolling Thunder Records in early 2006 and began work on a new record; O'Day also released his first album of solo material, the acoustic-based Street Performance, that October via Springman.